The sad news of Shane Warne's death in Thailand at the young age of 52 came as a huge shock especially following so closely the passing of another Aussie cricket legend Rodney Marsh, aged 74.
Warne's extraordinary achievements have been well documented over the past week, so I won't list them here.
Suffice to say he was the best spinner I've ever witnessed and played a huge role in reviving cricket around the world.
He brought the dying art of leg spin to the forefront. For years leg spinners had been regarded as too risky because they were considered to be too expensive -- and usually were.
Although many leg spinners were capable of turning the ball sharply, few had the required control which invariably meant easy boundaries for batsmen.
Leg spinners were regarded at best as a luxury, at worst the weakest link. It was not surprising that few schoolboy cricketers aspired to take up that role.
Warne not only revived the art of leg spin, he turned it into a hugely effective weapon as time and again he outwitted the best batsman in the world.
No matter what country he was playing in, there would be a buzz of excitement amongst spectators when he came on to bowl.
He was an intelligent bowler always working on ways to get a wicket using his arsenal which included googlies, flippers and sliders.
He loved the challenge of bowling to top class batsmen and his tussles with the likes of India's Sachin Tendulkar and West Indies' Brian Lara were gripping.
Lara was "heartbroken" and visibly shaken at the news of Warne's death.
Warne inspired a whole new generation of players.
Before he came along, fast bowlers were regarded as the key to success in Test cricked as displayed by the formidable West Indies pace attack over two decades.
At that time, one of the few leg-spinners to achieve success was Pakistan's Abdul Qadir.
Warne introduced himself to the world as only he could do … a wicket with his very first ball in Ashes cricket on June 4, 1993 at Old Trafford.
And what a delivery it was, quickly becoming known as "the ball of the century."
He bamboozled England's Mike Gatting with a ball that landed outside leg stump and then spun in extraordinary fashion, taking his off stump and it was witnessed on television by millions.
For a moment, Gatting just stood there in total disbelief.
I had the opportunity to ask Gatting about that ball when he came to Thailand for a Sixes tournament some years ago.
He laughed, shook his head and said: "I have never ever seen a ball turn that far."
Spectators were stunned and the BBC called it "the delivery that changed history."
That ball proved a huge psychological blow for years to come. England batsmen just could not handle Warne.
It may seem a paradox but Warne was hugely popular in England despite his active role in many batting collapses.
He played for Hampshire from 2000-2007 and was skipper in three of those years and had a stand named after him.
Former Hampshire teammate Giles White commented "his attitude to the game just transformed the way we looked at it. He always wanted to win, there was no fear of failure."
He also observed "a night out with Warnie was your best night out ever."
Warne's death inevitably overshadowed the passing of Marsh only the day before.
Warne had sent condolences to the Marsh family just a few hours before his own death.
Marsh was an accomplished wicket-keeper and useful batsman, earning 96 caps for Australia.
He made his debut in the 1970-71 Ashes series and became a familiar figure behind the stumps.
The great Dennis Lillee was in the same Test team for much of that time and scorecards read "c Marsh b Lillee" an astonishing 96 times.
His Test career did not start well however, being nicknamed "Iron Gloves" by captain Ian Chappell after spilling chances in his opening Test, but he went on to record 355 dismissals.
Just like Warne, although he was a fierce competitor when representing Australia, once he retired he had no qualms about helping cricket in other countries.
He went on to be part of the England coaching set-up and even became an England selector.
Warne and Marsh will be sadly missed, two exceptional cricketers admired around the world.